


No need to worry, I'll be here for you.

by pelicanpal



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Airports, Canon Compliant, Established Relationship, Happy Ending, He is worried but it's all okay, Kim Hongjoong-centric, Light Angst, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Supportive Seonghwa, ateez as family, news article
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-28
Updated: 2020-08-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 15:27:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26151112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pelicanpal/pseuds/pelicanpal
Summary: “[BREAKING] Ateez’s Kim Hongjoong and Park Seonghwa reported to be dating each other.”Hongjoong read the headline that he had been dreading while he was on his way to the airport to meet the members. He is worried that he has failed his team and doesn't know how he will be able to face them.[or, Hongjoong is worried, but Seonghwa and Ateez show him how to be strong.]
Relationships: Kim Hongjoong/Park Seonghwa
Comments: 13
Kudos: 248





	No need to worry, I'll be here for you.

**Author's Note:**

> **This story is set before COVID-19. The characters wearing or not wearing masks are purely instances symbolic of their mindsets, not in reference to COVID. Everyone stay safe please!**
> 
> Title from 'I'm here for you' by X1.

People had been acting weird around Hongjoong all morning. It had taken him a while to notice, his perception clouded by a sleep-deprived early morning haze. But after a few sips of his Americano, he was sure of it. Everyone was acting weird, starting with his manager. It had began when Hongjoong had woken up. The manager had found him asleep in the studio again. Hongjoong had expected another lecture about getting more sleep in an actual bed. But instead the manager had asked him if he had checked his phone and then seemed almost relieved when Hongjoong had told him that it had died and that he had forgotten his charger. 

"Give it to me and I'll find an extra charger for you," the manager had said. Then he had rushed Hongjoong to get ready to go. He wouldn't even let Hongjoong turn off his own computer. It kinda made sense. Hongjoong knew that they had an early flight to Japan to catch. He had packed his bag already and brought it with him to the studio, anticipating not being able to return to the dorm before going to the airport. As Hongjoong was being rushed to the car, he had a vague thought about there being an unusual number of staff at the office at this time in the morning. 

But the moment that solidified his suspicions happened on the way to the car. The manager had sent him ahead to wait in the car while he grabbed some documents from the office. Clutching his Americano, Hongjoong made his way down the stairs with his bag. His mood souring as he tried to figure out what was happening. He hated not knowing what was wrong. He was a problem solver. But he couldn't do anything if he didn't even know what the problem was. Lost in his thoughts, he almost ran into someone stopped at the base of the stairs. Hongjoong stopped himself just in time before he ran into the woman. When she looked up, he recognized her. She was the woman who cleaned the building. 

He had seen her many times before when he was at the studio in the morning. He had always made sure to greet her every time he saw her, but at first he was very confused when she had not replied to his greeting and went back to her cleaning without saying anything. Hongjoong had wondered if he had done something to offend her until one day he got an answer. It had been a few months after they had debuted. He had been leaving the studio, frustrated with himself for his inability to finish a song when he had seen her again. He greeted her like usual not expecting a response, and then he noticed that there was a younger girl with her. He was taken aback when the girl, probably the woman's granddaughter, had recognized him. The girl had asked for his autograph. He had fumbled his signature onto the piece of paper still unused to the attention as the girl had excitedly chatted about how much she loved Ateez's music. She talked nonstop with no end in sight until her grandmother had grabbed her hand and said something to her in a language Hongjoong didn't recognize. The girl stopped talking with a sheepish smile and Hongjoong was able to apologetically make his exit. He was grateful to meet a fan but he was running late to a schedule. 

After that encounter, Hongjoong continued to greet the woman, but never expected a response, realizing that she probably didn't understand what he was saying. He made sure to give her a copy of each of their new albums for her granddaughter. Today, he thought it would be the same as usual. He bowed repeatedly to express his apology for almost running into her. But Hongjoong was surprised when she had grabbed his hand and looked at him with eyes full of concern.

"I.." she said in heavily accented Korean. He waited for her to continue, curious about what she was going to say. She had never tried to talk to him before. "... with you," she finished after a few moments of thinking about what to say. 

Hongjoong furrowed his brow. "What do you mean?" 

The woman spoke rapidly in reply and then squeezed his hand. He didn’t understand what she had said. He wanted to figure out what she meant, but he was interrupted by the manager bustling down the stairs. With many apologies to the woman, the manager had pushed Hongjoong out the door and into the car. Hongjoong was still puzzled about what the woman meant and even more so by the strange behavior of everyone towards him today. He was resolved to get to the bottom of whatever this was. 

"Hyung, what's wrong?" He asked as they drove away from the studio. 

“Nothing,” the manager answered too quickly. 

“Are you sure? Everyone has been acting strange today.” 

The manager checked both directions at a stop sign too many times before he answered. “No. It’s fine.” 

Hongjoong stared intently at his manager. What was he missing? “Is everyone okay? Did someone get hurt?” 

“No. Everyone is okay. No one is hurt. Don’t worry about it right now, Hongjoong.” 

Hongjoong was relieved. He knew his manager would not lie to him about that. Hongjoong was about to drop it, chalking it up to his overactive imagination, when his manager’s phone dinged. His manager flipped it over instantly so that Hongjoong couldn’t see the notification. Now, that was suspicious. Hongjoong wished he had his phone. He wanted to call Seonghwa to ask him if he knew what was going on. 

“Hyung, do you have my phone?” 

“It’s in my bag. But it’s still dead. I couldn’t find a charger for it yet.” 

“Oh, that’s okay. I can charge it at the airport.” Hongjoong settled back into his seat, watching the scenery go by as they drove towards the airport. He had to accept that he wasn’t going to get any answers for now. 

They were about halfway to the airport when the manager pulled off the road and stopped at a gas station. “I’ll be right back,” he said as he stepped out of the car to pay. 

Hongjoong didn’t pay that much attention, his mind forming a new melody for a song. He knew that he would probably forget it by the time they made it through security at the airport and he could finally charge his phone. He needed to record a voice note now. Not really thinking about anything else, Hongjoong grabbed the manager’s phone and opened it. Most people around him were used to him suddenly using their devices to record an idea. No one minded anymore. He was almost too distracted to notice. The manager had a lot of missed calls and text messages, but Hongjoong ignored those. He wasn’t there to snoop. But that all changed when a notification popped up. 

It was the headline to a news article. Most people on their staff and team had an alert for anything related to Ateez. Hongjoong usually checked them too everyday, just to see what people were saying about them. Luckily, the majority had been positive about them since their debut. Mostly articles about their music and style. But this one was different. This article started with “BREAKING” in all caps. Hongjoong froze for a moment. He knew he had to click on it. He had to know. But the twisting anxiety in his gut stopped him. His suspicions had been true. Whatever was in this article was what the manager had been keeping from him all morning. Maybe he shouldn’t look at it. Maybe it was better to not know. He could stay in the peaceful oblivion for a little while longer. No. He had a responsibility as the leader. Good or bad, this was his problem to deal with. 

He opened the article. “[BREAKING] Ateez’s Kim Hongjoong and Park Seonghwa reported to be dating each other.” Hongjoong blinked. He read the title again. But it stayed the same. The words swam in and out of his vision as he tried to comprehend what it said. He kept scrolling. It was a rumor, a joke. There was nothing to it. Then he saw the pictures. 

Hongjoong jumped when the manager opened the car door. "Sorry. That took a minute. But I got you some gum for the flight." The manager was too busy organizing his purchases that he didn't look at Hongjoong until he was done speaking. He paused when he saw the cell phone in Hongjoong's hands. "What are you doing?" 

"I…" Hongjoong said but his voice broke. He swallowed to clear his throat. 

"Oh Hongjoong, you weren't supposed to see that." He gently pulled the phone from Hongjoong's hands. "It's okay. We're handling it." 

"How? It's everywhere. And they have pictures. How did they get the pictures?" Hongjoong was so mad at himself. They had been so cautious. In everything they did, he and Seonghwa were careful to be perceived as only friends. But when he saw the pictures he knew they were caught. The pictures were blurry and low quality, obviously paparazzi images shot from far away in low light, but it was enough. He remembered that night. They had been on tour in a foreign country so he had thought that they were safe. They had been on the balcony of their hotel room, high up above a city. He hadn't been thinking of anyone else. He had just been stupidly enamored with his romantic boyfriend, smiling like a lovesick fool. He had reached up on his tiptoes to give Seonghwa a kiss and then pulled him inside. He had no idea that someone else had been watching them. What had he done? 

"Hongjoong, just breathe. Look at me. It's going to be okay. We got this," his manager said to try to calm Hongjoong down. "We can cancel your flight. You don't have to go."

Hongjoong focused back on the manager. He took a deep breath and tried to clear his thoughts. "No, no. Don't do that. I have to go. I have to… I have to talk to Seonghwa. I need to." He reached for the manager's phone again. 

The manager shook his head. "I'm sorry. You can't." 

"But, hyung, please. I need to call him."

"I'm sorry. We took away their phones. When the news broke, Wooyoung and San tried to go live after reading some comments. Seonghwa thought it was best if no one had their phones until everyone calmed down." 

Of course, Seonghwa would be the levelheaded one even at a time like this. Hongjoong didn't know what to do. He was angry and scared. "Then call their manager." 

"I don't think it will work. They should be going through security right now. I don't think I'll be able to reach them." 

"What? They're already at the airport?" 

"Yes. We thought it was best if they went ahead today in case the press was there." 

Hongjoong paused. He hadn't thought about the press at the airport yet. They were going to be crazy after this news. Then, he thought of Seonghwa and the rest of the members having to face them by themselves without him there to help them. 

"Why didn't you tell me?" Hongjoong snapped. "Did you think that I wouldn't find out? You should have told me right away. I needed to know." 

The manager shrank back a little into his seat and looked away before answering. "When we realized that you were at the studio, we thought it was best to wait to tell you until you were together. With such an early flight, we thought we could get everyone through the airport before the news spread too much. But it traveled faster than we thought it would." 

Hongjoong clenched his fists. His emotions were a mess. He felt sick to his stomach. He wanted to run away or go back to his room and hide under his blankets. He wanted to do nothing and everything all at once. But mostly he wanted to go back to before this ever happened. He just wanted it to be him and Seonghwa and not care about anything else. That was a fantasy though. This had happened and he couldn't run away from this. He wasn't going to abandon anyone now. 

He took a deep breath to stop himself from doing something stupid. They had been sitting at the gas station for a while. He looked at the clock. "We need to go. I can't miss the flight," he said, keeping his voice even. 

The manager hesitated. "Hongjoong, I'm sorry. I can…" 

Hongjoong interrupted him. "Please. Not now. Let's just go." 

Thankfully, the manager understood his need for quiet and drove silently the rest of the way to the airport. Hongjoong let his thoughts run wild. They crisscrossed and fell over one another, circling around but always coming back to one thought- he had failed everyone. He had failed the fans. They would hate him now. He had failed his members. He was responsible for them and now he had destroyed their careers that they had all worked so hard for. And Seonghwa. He had promised to protect him and make him happy. And now he was just going to drag him down with him. 

As they neared the airport, the traffic thickened and they slowed down. Hongjoong shrank down into his seat as he noticed a news channel logo on a car. 

"Hyung, do you have a hat?" The manager quickly found a black one that had the design from their last tour on it.  _ Ironic _ , Hongjoong thought as he put it on. Then he searched through his bag for sunglasses and a mask. 

They were almost to the drop off point. Hongjoong was right to be worried. The place was overflowing with people- fans, paparazzi, news cameras. It was going to be difficult to make their way through the crowd. Hongjoong was second guessing his decision to go on this flight today. But then he noticed a familiar van parked at the curb. 

"I thought you said they were already inside."

"They should have been. They were supposed to get here earlier and go inside. They must have been delayed," the manager said. 

As they stopped at the curb behind the other van, Hongjoong saw a head peak out the window briefly to look at his car. It was Mingi. His bright red hair was obvious no matter where he was. Mingi waved and then ducked his head back inside the car. A few moments passed and then the van door opened and Mingi stepped out. He didn't look any different than usual- his tall, lanky frame and confident demeanor still commanding attention. Hongjoong felt like he should look different or act different after the news. But nothing. Maybe it was just Hongjoong who felt different. 

Next out of the van was San, who pulled Wooyoung out with him. Then came Yunho, Yeosang, and Jongho. Hongjoong held his breath for a minute as he waited for the last member. Hongjoong almost wished that he had decided not to come. It would probably be better if he didn't. But then there he was. Seonghwa stepped out of the van like a model stepping onto the runway. He was dressed impeccably with black pants that showed off his long legs, his shirt carefully tucked in, and topped off with a leather jacket that Hongjoong had given him for his birthday. His black hair wasn't styled, but still hung perfectly across his forehead. A breeze ruffled his hair and Seonghwa ran his fingers through it like he was posing for the pictures. Hongjoong looked down at his jeans from yesterday and sweatshirt. He pulled his cap more firmly down onto his head. 

"If you're going to make this flight, you have to go now, Hongjoong. That crowd is going to be difficult to get through. If we're all going together, just stay close to me and try not to stand too close to Seonghwa until we can figure this out. Alright?" The manager said. 

Hongjoong agreed but most of his attention was focused on the crowd outside. He knew that the commotion would increase as soon as he stepped outside. They would be clamoring for a word, a statement, a picture of the two of them together. Hongjoong always thought that the idol life was like being under a microscope, but now that was going to be 100x worse. They wouldn’t be able to speak to each other or even look at each other without everyone dissecting their every move. But he couldn’t think about that now. He needed to focus on getting through the airport without anyone getting hurt by these crowds. His plan was to keep his head down and just get this over with. 

He opened the door and stepped outside. Even with his sunglasses on, his eyes hurt from the flashing of the cameras. He heard his name being yelled by the people in the crowd, but he didn’t look up. He stayed close to the manager, trying to hide in his shadow. A few of the security guards came over to talk with the manager, blocking them off from the rest of the group. Hongjoong didn’t try to join the others. They were a few feet away, surrounded by other security guards. He wanted to join them, but he didn’t feel like he deserved it anymore. It was probably better to keep his distance for now. He’d seen scandals in groups before. The guilty member was always at the back, trying to hide. This was his fault. He was the leader and he should have known better than to risk everyone’s careers. 

Through all the commotion, he risked one glance at Seonghwa. He had looked so confident, so unconstrained stepping out of the van- the complete opposite of everything Hongjoong felt right now. Hongjoong almost couldn't see him through the security guards that had gathered around the rest of the members, but then their eyes met. Seonghwa was already looking at him. 

Hongjoong noticed little lines on Seonghwa's forehead and the firm set of his mouth. It was a familiar expression, only not one Hongjoong was expecting. Seonghwa was worried, but there were no traces of the guilt and shame that Hongjoong felt. Seonghwa wasn't hiding. He hadn't covered his face or turned away his head. Hongjoong looked at the other members. None of them were disguising their faces either. No sunglasses or hats or masks. It was only Hongjoong. 

Hongjoong frowned behind his mask. This was going to be a huge scandal. Not only were Hongjoong and Seonghwa's careers going to be affected, but all of them in the group. Why were they acting like this? But then he remembered the night that he and Seonghwa had sat down with everyone to talk about the possibility of them dating. Even before he finished explaining the possible consequences, Wooyoung had laughed and stopped him. "Hongjoong-hyung, stop being so serious. This is a good thing. We all knew. We should be celebrating." Then, Wooyoung had stood up to get the champagne that they had hidden for special occasions. 

Hongjoong had stopped him. "But…" 

"Hyung, it's okay," Yunho said. "We're a family. We'll all support our mom and dad no matter what." 

Seonghwa had pulled him closer and whispered to him. "See, Joongie. I told you not to worry. Now, stop trying to convince them otherwise or I'll think you don't actually want me." 

Hongjoong had pouted. "That's not true. But I just want them to seriously consider what this might mean." 

Seonghwa had looked around the room at the rest of the members pouring the champagne into glasses and chatting happily. Yeosang grabbed a glass from Jongho's hand and replaced it with a sippy cup full of apple juice. Jongho complained loudly and tried to grab the glass back, but Yeosang just passed it to Mingi who nonchalantly held it above his head to keep it away from Jongho. "They're sure. And I'm sure," Seonghwa said. He gently tilted Hongjoong's chin to look at him in the eyes. "Are you sure?" 

Hongjoong had stared into Seonghwa's eyes. They were open and clear, tinted with expectation and the layer of fondness that Hongjoong had realized was reserved only for him. He pushed aside all the other thoughts and trusted that with these people around him, everything was going to be okay. "I'm sure," he said with a smile. 

As the memory washed over him, Hongjoong realized that it wasn't a mistake that the member's van was delayed. They had purposely waited for him. They weren't going to hide. They had said that they would support them and that is exactly what they were going to do. Together. If it had been another of the other members in this situation, Hongjoong would have done the same thing. He had been looking at this backwards. He hadn't done anything wrong. Hongjoong had just fallen in love, and seeing Seonghwa's character on display, he was happy that he had fallen in love with this man. The members had followed through on their promise to support him, now Hongjoong just had to follow through on his promise to lead them. 

The manager tugged on Hongjoong's sleeve to get his attention. They were getting ready to move. Seonghwa and the members first and then Hongjoong at the back. Hongjoong lost eye contact with Seonghwa for a minute and when he looked back, the security guards and managers were trying to get the members to start walking. It seemed like San was arguing with one of them. Hongjoong looked for Seonghwa again. He was standing a little bit away from the group and Hongjoong knew he was waiting for him to make his decision. 

Hongjoong didn’t hesitate anymore. He took off his hat, sunglasses, and mask and handed them to the manager. The manager looked at him in confusion, but Hongjoong didn’t explain. He squared his shoulders and walked over to join Seonghwa and the rest of the members. When Hongjoong reached him, Seonghwa smiled. Hongjoong smiled back. They ignored the increased volume of the crowd from seeing them together. 

“Thank you,” Hongjoong said. He wasn’t sure if Seonghwa could hear him exactly, but he knew Seonghwa would understand. Hongjoong held out his hand and Seonghwa took it and intertwined their fingers. Hongjoong felt someone next him and turned slightly to see Wooyoung smiling at him. Wooyoung reached over and quickly fixed Hongjoong’s hair. 

“You have to look good for the pictures, hyung,” Wooyoung said. 

Before Hongjoong could reply, the security guards were urging them forward. It was time to face the crowd. Hongjoong could feel the rest of the members form up behind them. He took the first step forward, chin up and eyes straight ahead. Seonghwa walked in step with him. There was still so much to figure out, but now he knew how he was going to face it. 

**Author's Note:**

> This story was inspired by the video I saw of Wooseok walking through the airport during the scandal with X1. I was so impressed with how he kept his head up and walked confidently that it inspired this.  
> Here is a link, if you don't know what I'm talking about:  
> https://www.facebook.com/wooseok1it/videos/664362387304873/
> 
> Anyways, this story has been sitting in my drafts for a while, but I couldn't seem to get it right until now. Hopefully you enjoyed it! As always, let me know what you think.


End file.
